English

Alternative forms

• arste
• yerst (dialectal)

Adjective

erst ‎(not comparable)

1. (obsolete) First.

Etymology 2

From Middle English erst, arst, erest, from Old English ǣrest ‎(“first, erst, at first, before all”), from Proto-Germanic *airist ‎(“erst”). Cognate with Scots erst ‎(“erst”), Dutch eerst.

Adverb

erst ‎(not comparable)

1. (obsolete) First of all, before (some other specified thing).
2. (obsolete) Sooner (than); before.
   • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, chapter xxviij, in Le Morte Darthur, book X:

     Thenne he sente the varlet ageyne and bad hym telle Kyng Mark that I wille come as soone as I am hole / for erste I maye doo hym noo good / Thenne Kynge Mark hadde his ansuer / There with came Elyas and badde the Kynge yelde vp the castel

3. (archaic, poetic) Formerly, once, erstwhile.

Quotations

• For usage examples of this term, see Citations:erst.

Derived terms

• erstwhile

Anagrams

• rest, rest., REST

German

Etymology

See the numeral erste.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ʔeːɐ̯st]

Adverb

erst

1. first
2. only (with time)

   Sie ist erst 28 Jahre alt.‎

   She is only 28 years old.

3. not until, not for (with reference to the passage of time)

   Ich fliege erst nächstes Jahr in Urlaub.‎

   I'm not going on vacation until next year.

   Mein Bruder kommt erst in drei Wochen an.‎

   My brother's not arriving for three weeks.

Usage notes

• With reference to the passage of time, the opposite of erst is schon. Erst emphasizes how long it is until something happens, whereas schon emphasizes how soon something will happen. Thus erst in drei Wochen means "not for three weeks [and that seems so far away]", while schon in drei Wochen means "in only three weeks [and I'm glad I don't have to wait longer!]".

Synonyms

• zuerst

Related terms

• erster